College ABC
by Annette de Rouge et Noir
Summary: College. Nothing is ever simple on college. When the Amis go to college, many times will pass that will draw them closer, test their friendship, and teach them valuable lessons. Rated T just in case. Enjoy :3
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

**A/N:**

**How's it going, everyone? After reading Eponine T. Daae's "West End High" (Bookmark this, and go read it now. It's fantastic.) I decided to write my own Les Miserables Fan fiction. I have trouble being consistent with my updates, so the upload dates will be sporadic. I hope you like it! Please Rate & Review!**

Eponine Thenardier looked into the mirror on the wall of her doom room as she braided her curly brown hair. If you had told her that she would be where she was now a year ago, she would have called you delusional. She was a freshman at West End University. At the beginning of her senior year of high school, college had been the last think on her mind. Eponine was from a rough neighborhood. She had lived in a dysfunctional family. Her neighbors were con-men, thieves and prostitutes. But, she and her family hadn't always lived like that.

Her family had once owned a little rustic inn in a one of those towns that you find pictures of in travel guides. Their humble business had never made them rich, but, they were happy. Back then, they had been a real, loving family. Even then, her parents were generally not very nice people, but they had always done what they thought was good for their children, Eponine and her two younger siblings, Azelma and Gavroche, and thought about them first. But those times didn't last. Shortly after Eponine turned seven, disaster stuck. A fire broke out in her family's inn and the building burned to the ground. They didn't have fire insurance, so they lost everything. With both their spirits and in funds gone, they moved away from their beautiful town and into the city. The only thing that they could afford was a small house, which was more of a hovel than a home, in the slums of the city.

Eponine had believed that the situation couldn't get any worse than it already was, but after the fire, her parents started to change. Her father turned to drink, drawing together a gang of men from the slum. They were known to get involved in small crime. Her mother started to lose her mind, going off into terrifying rages and sometimes not even recognizing her own family. They had become thieves, often dragging the children into the crime with them. The unkindness that they had shown to strangers was now shown to their children. The only times when they really took notice of their children, were when they needed them for one of their schemes or when they took out their anger on them.

Eponine soon took it upon herself to act as her siblings' caretaker. She kept an eye out for the younger children, kept them out of trouble and as soon as she came to the legal working age, she got a job to help support her brother and sister. She not only cared for them, but also took the heat of her parents rage. She had many scars to show from these terrifying times in her childhood, but she carefully hid them, fearing that if evidence was seen of these beatings, she would be separated from her siblings and they would all be put into the system. Her whole life, from a young age, had been dedicated to her siblings.

When she started her senior year in high school, all of Eponine's classmates had been already applying for colleges and scholarships. It was her plan to just start working full time immediately after high school, but once her best friend, Marius Pontmercy, caught on to this plan, he decided to get involved.

"'Ponine, you realize you can't just work at subway for your whole life, right?" He asked one day as he walked her to work after school.

"I have to work somewhere, and beggars can't be choosers. What do you have against Subway, anyways?" She joked, avoiding his gaze.

Marius frowned. "That's not what I mean, and you know it. I know you aren't even trying to get into any colleges. Why?" He stopped and turned toward her.

She sighed and finally looked at him. "Marius, you know that I can't afford college. It's way too much money. Plus, I have to take care of my siblings. What would they do if I just up and left them?"

"Eponine, you don't have to worry about 'Zelma and Gav! You know that they can take care of themselves. Azelma is seventeen. She's been working for a year now and she and Gav have learned all of the tricks for surviving the ghetto. Your parents will be able to make up for any loss of funds after you stop working to pay for home expenses."

Eponine internally cringed. She had always lied to Marius about her family life. She had always told him that they were just out a lot because they worked multiple jobs. He had no idea about the beatings that she got almost daily.

"Well maybe they can take care of themselves, but where would I get the money? There's no way I could even begin to afford something like College." She retaliated.

"You can get scholarships, 'Ponine! I've seen how well you did on your SAT and PSAT. With those scores, it would be simple for you to get scholarships. We could even go to the same school. That would be great! The way I see it, the only thing holding you back now is yourself."

And he was right. It would be a lie to say that she didn't want to go to college. Neither of her parents had gone to college, and the last thing that she wanted was to end up like them. It didn't hurt to say that she loved the idea of going to college with Marius.

She had known Marius ever since Jr. High. He had been, though he denied it, a wimp. They had been friends ever since she had pulled him out of a dumpster that a few of the jocks in the school tossed him in. Ever since that incident, they had been very close. As he matured, Marius lost the glasses and filled out. He became the star of the baseball team, and was very popular with the ladies. Even after all of this, she was still his best friend. Contrary to popular belief, Eponine didn't fall for the jock that he had become. I was quite the opposite. She had fallen on love with the wimp she pulled out of the dumpster. It was obvious that he didn't feel the same feelings about her, and he had no idea about her feelings for him, but that didn't stop her from spending much of her time with him. The idea of going to college with Marius seemed too good to be true.

That night, after she got home from work, she plopped down on the bed that she shared with Azelma and started to think, chewing on her bottom lip as she did. Azelma walked into the room and after seeing Eponine, joined her on the bed.

"Uh oh, I've seen that face before. What's the matter, Ep?" She asked, frowning concernedly.

"It's Marius. He wants me to try to get into college, but I know I can't do that." Eponine said, sighing. She had done a lot of sighing recently.

"Why can't you? If you want to go, I don't see what's stopping you." Azelma said, shrugging.

"You know why, Azelma! We barely have any money as it is! There's no way I could ever pay for school!"

"Scholarships! Loans! Jobs! You can use the money we've been saving for a rainy day! If there's one thing I know about you 'Ponine, it's that when you set your mind to it, you can do anything."

"But even if I could afford it, what about you and Gav? I can't just leave you both. Not in this kind of situation." Eponine gestured around her. The house really was a wreck.

"Eponine, I'm seventeen! I have a well-paying job and lots of friends. You know I can do your job as caretaker just as well as you can. I've been living here almost as long as you and I can continue to do so without trouble." Azelma exclaimed. "If you really think about it, the only thing holding you back from going to College is yourself!"

Eponine sighed yet again. "You sound like Marius... But you're right."

"Good." Azelma said, smiling slightly. "Maybe you should take that as a hint and start listening."

It took a lot of pestering and persuading, but eventually Eponine did just that. By graduation day, she had many scholarships, and had been accepted, along with Marius, to West End University. Talk about dreams coming true. She had been attending the school for almost three months at this point and, though she constantly thought about her siblings, she didn't regret her decision.

* * *

Looking out the window of her dorm room, Eponine found that the ground was covered in leaves of all colors and the trees were shaking in the wind, but the sun kept peeking out from behind the clouds. The day would be cold, but not miserable. She crossed to the closet and pulled out the hooded jacket that Gavroche and Azelma had given her as a going away present, and pulled it on.

She looked at the clock next to her bed and found that she had enough time to walk to one of the class buildings. She had an early morning class on Tuesdays this semester and didn't want to be late. She kicked on her boots and, slinging her bag over her shoulder, and headed out the door. You would instantly notice that her room was only half-full.

At the beginning of the year, Eponine used to have a roommate. It had been a girl named Carlotta, but after only a few weeks, the girl had asked for a single room. That day was counted in the top ten happiest days of Eponine's life. Carlotta had been a pain in the neck. She was the kind of girl who practically bathed in perfume, and as a result, the dorm room had constantly reeked of it. It was as if it was Carlotta's goal in life to be as irritating as possible, and that being the case, the perfume problem was not the end of the problems. Carlotta could not keep her clothes and other crap in her own space. Eponine was constantly dumping the junk onto Carlotta's bed, only to find it all over the floor again. Eponine thought she was going to go crazy when, finally, Carlotta asked for her own room. When she found out, it was all Eponine could do to keep from breaking out into song.

On the way to class, Eponine hummed as she tromped through the wet leaves on the ground. She loved fall, and she had never seen one as beautiful as this. As she was walking through the commons, she saw someone a little ways away from her waving. It was Marius. Her heart did a little jump as she hurried over to say hello. Marius was walking the opposite direction with a few of his friends, Thomas Enjolras, Luke Joly, and Owen Grantaire. Eponine found it very strange that most of his friends preferred to go by their last names, but she never questioned them. As she neared the boys, Grantaire got down on his knees and pretended to bow to her.

"Hail! Here approaches the Great and Powerful Epimitus!" He said in a very dramatic voice.

"The great Eponine proclaims that, if you wish to be able to ever have the ability to have children, you should never call her Epimitus again." She declared, glaring at him.

"Your wish is my command! Just don't hurt me!" He said, backing up to hide behind Enjolras quickly.

"Good morning, Eponine." Enjolras said, nodding at her.

"Morning, Enj." She replied, smiling. She turned to face Marius. "Where are you guys headed?"

"Breakfast at the Café. Interested in joining us?" he asked.

"I would, but I have class soon. Can I take a rain check?" She looked at her watch.

"Sure." Marius said, smiling. "Maybe we'll see you at lunch?"

"When do you know me to miss lunch?" She laughed.

"Good point." Grantaire commented, from behind Enjolras.

Eponine glared at him. "Grantaire, you might want to wipe your hands off." She added as she looked at the mud smeared across them from the exaggerated bowing earlier. "Joly's looking a bit nervous."

The hypochondriac mentioned was standing about four feet away from Grantaire, looking disgusted. An evil smile spread across Grantaire's face.

"Ooooh Jolllly." He called in a sing-song voice.

"N-no, don't even think about it, Grantaire! Do you realize how many germs there are on the ground?" Joly cried, backing away.

Grantaire rushed at him. Joly ran like no tomorrow.

"Stop it, Grantaire!" Marius called

Enjolras slapped his palm against his forehead.

Eponine just laughed.

After a minute, Eponine waved goodbye to the boys and ran off to class.

**A/N: If you have suggestions or things you'd like to see, don't be afraid to ask. :)**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

**A/N:**

**I was bored so I decided to write more of this. Oh, The wonders of being home schooled If you have any ideas for little short stories that I can add here and there, PM them to me (please don't put them in the comments so that if I like it it's not ruined for the rest of the readers). Don't be shy! I don't bite… Most of the time that is...**

**Enjoy! And as always, please Rate & Review.**

After about a minute more of watching the antics going on between Grantaire and Joly, Enjolras intervened. He walked over, grabbed Grantaire by the collar of his shirt and swung him around into a tree.

"Oof!" Grantaire grunted and crashed to the ground right in the middle of a puddle. "Ouch! Ow, my head..." The, now wet, boy asked. "Geez, Enj. Do you have to be so violent?"

"Obviously, I do." Enjolras replied coldly.

When Joly was satisfied that Grantaire's hand where clean, the group of boys continued on their way to the student parking lot, where they all climbed into Enjolras car. They were headed to the Musain Cafe for breakfast. They spent a large portion of their time in the cafe. It was run by one of their friends, Josiah Feuilly, who would have been a, literally, starving artist without it. Usually he was a fan maker, but that generally didn't earn him much money. He ran the cafe as his day job and decorated the walls with the art he created in his spare time. He gave the boys and their friends use of the back room so that they could meet with their friends to talk about politics, study, and just spend time in fellowship.

Grantaire was an anarchist and generally wasn't very helpful to any of the conversations, as you might guess, but he enjoyed spending time at the cafe anyhow, first because of his addiction to espresso and second because he admired and loved Enjolras, having known him since they were young. At times, his admiration of the blond boy went to the point of almost creepiness. Enjolras, in return, did not share these affections. He was almost religious about his political views. He had always hated the other boy with a passion, and you can imagine how he would be horrified when he found out that the same over-attached anarchist was assigned as his roommate.

The car ride to the cafe was the same as usual. Grantaire was singing at the top of his lungs to the radio while Marius and Enjolras had a very animate conversation about politics, being that Enjolras was a Conservative Republican and Marius was a Liberal Democrat. Joly made occasional comments but spent most of his time in the car reading his medical textbook, and messaging back and forth with his girlfriend Musichetta.

When they finally pulled into the parking lot, they saw that the cafe was already alive with activity. The café was probably one of the most popular hangouts for the students of WEU, but it was also a very family friendly environment. When the boys went up to the counter, Feuilly was manning the register.

"Morning, chums." He drawled in his southern accent. "Can I get y'all the usual stuff?"

"Two shots in the espresso this morning, Buddy." Grantaire said, rubbing his head where it was developing a large goose egg.

"Ouch. I see Enjolras got tired of your crap again." Feuilly laughed, making Enjolras smirk. "You got it, pal."

The boys walked to the back room where several of their friends where already sitting. Conversation raged through the room, some singing to the radio, others joking and laughing, others arguing. The boys sat down at an almost empty table where Marius' roommate, Kevin Courfeyrac, and Enjolras' best friend since childhood, Derrick Combeferre were arguing.

"PC's are much better, Comb. They're generally less expensive than Macs." Courfeyrac argued.

"In most cases, though, my friend, the higher price means higher quality parts." Combeferre countered.

"But the price can make a Mac not worth it if you only need to do basic computing."

Enjolras sat down right in the middle of the two. He never really did understand the competition in between computer users. He personally didn't care which he used. Secretly though, he liked Microsoft Word better than Pages, though he would admit his partially to anyone.

"Ooh, how interesting!" Grantaire said, sitting down across from Courfeyrac. "Last time it was Play Station versus Xbox. What will it be next, Marvel vs. DC?"

"Marvel." Combeferre stated

"DC." Courfeyrac commented at exactly the same moment.

Enjolras interrupted, before anything else could start. "Don't either of you ever argue about something that matters?"

"Like what?" Grantaire said, grinning at Enjolras from across the table. "If page 32 or page 53 of the Biology text book was more interesting."

"Come on Enj," Courfeyrac teased. "Loosen up a bit, will you? Why don't we try to have a normal conversation instead of arguing about politics all the time?"

"Politics are normal." Combeferre said in Enjolras' defense. "Though I do admit that we talk about them a little bit too much."

"Oh man, et tu, Combeferre?" Enjolras grumbled, glaring at his friend.

"Sorry." The other boy said sheepishly.

"20 dollars says that Enjolras can't hold a conversation without talking about politics or school for twenty minutes." Courfeyrac called out.

"Twenty minutes, you say?" Enjolras asked, as he thought about it. He knew he shouldn't.

_This'll only encourage them._ He thought.

He groaned and then decided.

"You're on!" He said.

"Yes!" Grantaire cheered.

"Timer starts... now!" Marius said looking at his watch_. 9:20 a.m._ "What should we talk about then?"

They all stared at each other silently, each expecting the other to come up with the answer.

"What do normal people talk about?" Courfeyrac asked sheepishly.

"Don't call others normal people." Marius moaned. "It makes me give up hope of ever being normal again."

"So..." Enjolras started. "Combeferre... How are things with Molly?"

Molly was Combeferre's high school sweetheart. She had ended up going to a college half across the country from WEU, but Combeferre had insisted that they try to keep their relationship going. They were constantly on the phone or texting each other.

"Oh, things with Molly are fantastic." Combeferre gushed, smiling. "She's studying French and says that the course is really difficult, but she's having a great time in college. The long term relationship is working out great for us. We're both trying to make plans to meet up during Christmas break."

"Dude, you're so lucky to have such a great girl." Grantaire sighed. "I can't seem to keep a girlfriend. I just don't get why the ladies don't flock to this."

He gestured to himself, flexing what little muscles he had. They all sat in silence for about 5 seconds, staring at him. Then Courfeyrac snorted and they all lost it.

"What?" Grantaire asked, frowning at them confusedly as they laughed. "Did I say something funny?"

"No. No,_** SNORT**_, not at all." Courfeyrac said trying to compose himself. "Good luck with that, Grant."

"I know that I'm girlfriend free, and Marius is hopeless." Courfeyrac stated.

"Hey!" Marius cried indignantly.

"It's true though" Grantaire laughed. "You can't see a good girl when you see one."

The rest of the boys at the table laughed as Marius glowered at Grantaire.

Courfeyrac turned to Enjolras. "What about you, Enj? Is there any special girl in your life?"

"No." He said, shaking his head again. "I have more important things to do than spend time gawking over girls."

"Thought as much," Grantaire chuckled. "Mr. Stoic over here could never even have a girlfriend if he tried."

"I'm sure I could if that was what was important to me." Enjolras said, shrugging. "I guess it goes to show you where you're priorities are. Coffee, superheroes and girls."

"He's got you there, Grant." Marius said, elbowing Grantaire in the side.

Enjolras felt his phone buzz in his pocket and took it out to find a reminder that class started in twenty minutes.

"Well boys. It seems that the clock now reads 9:50 am. And I'm getting reminders that we still have a day ahead of us." He said standing and stretching. "I'd like my 20 bucks, Courfeyrac."

Courfeyrac, astounded of his loss, handed over the money.

* * *

After class, Eponine walked out of the academic building. Running swiftly down the steps, she looked at the sky. The sky was starting to grow ominous and it was obvious that it was only a matter of time before the clouds burst. She would have to hurry if she wanted to get to the ABC Hall before it started raining. As she walked briskly in the cold air, she shivered. At mid-November, she was expecting snow at any time. She was thinking that she was wrong about her guess about decent weather that morning when she felt her phone start to buzz in her pocket. It's was a track phone that she had bought at the beginning of the school year so that she could contact with her siblings and her friends. She pulled it out, and looked at the screen. The number was unfamiliar but she answered it anyways.

"This is Eponine."

"Hey 'Pon!" It was Azelma. This was the weekly call that they agreed on before Eponine had left home.

"Hello, 'Zelma! What number are you calling from? I don't recognize it." She said, looking at her watch. "And for goodness sake, what are you doing calling me in the middle of school."

"I would call from home, but Mom and Dad haven't paid the phone bill for almost a month now. I actually managed to find a public phone in the pizza shack a few blocks from home. "Azelma explained nonchalantly. "Don't worry about school. We've had some bad rainstorms recently and the river flooded a ton of streets. School's out for the next couple of days."

"Floods? The house didn't flood did it? Are you OK? Is Gavroche OK? And speaking of Gavroche is he doing his homework? Are you both eating well? Have Mom and Dad-" Eponine said, worried.

"Whoa there, cool your jets. We're doing just fantastic. Everything is going really well. Grades are high. We're both healthy. Not a bruise on either of us." Azelma said calmly. "We're not the ones you should be worried about. Ever since you went to college, you've seemed more freaked out on the phone."

"Sorry. I think it's just the fact that I normally have first-hand involvement in both of your lives. Now that I'm here, the only contact that I get is via these phone calls." Eponine sighed. "During the week, you could be dead in a ditch and I wouldn't know."

"Lovely image there, 'Ponine." Azelma said dryly.

"Sorry." Eponine said sheepishly.

After a few more minutes of conversation, Eponine wrapped up the conversation.

"Hey, I have to get going. I love you, Azelma. Tell Gavroche the same and give him a hug for Me."

"Love you too, big sis. I'll do that."

And with that, they hung up.

As if the snap of the closing phone was a signal, the churning skies finally opened up and it started pouring. Eponine, protecting her bag and cell phone from the rain, made a run for the dining hall, which was in sight now. She was quickly soaked to the bone. She was about running up the steps of the dining hall when she slipped on the wet pavement. The world slowed down around her as she fell. She reached for something to grab, but her fingers only clawed at air. She closed her eyes waiting for the collision with hard ground. It never came. She opened her eyes to find that she was being held up by the arms by none other than Marius.

"Are you alright?" He asked, looking almost surprised as she felt.

"Y-yeah, thanks." She answered, blushing as she tilted her head back to look him in the eye. "If you hadn't come along, my brains would be smashed all over the sidewalk."

"It's a good thing I did, then." He commented as he helped her stand back up.

Eponine looked around them and found her own books and papers were everywhere. She had dropped everything except for her phone.

"Oh! My books! Everything is so wet. This is horrible!" She cried, bending over to grab everything and nearly slipping on the wet pavement again.

"Whoa, be careful Eponine!" He said grabbing her to keep her standing. "It's ok. I've got it."

He bent over and finished cleaning up the books and papers.

"What are you doing out here?" Eponine asked him, hoping she wasn't still blushing.

"When I noticed how late you were to lunch I was a bit worried. When I saw that it had started raining I decided to go look for you." He said, smiling at her.

"Thanks again. It's a good thing that you did." She said, feeling the blush creeping up again.

"We had better get out of the rain." He said gesturing toward the dining hall. "Careful on the steps this time, ok?"

Eponine laughed, embarrassed, and followed Marius into out of the rain into the building.

**A/N:**

**I think that the getting started part of writing these is always the hardest. Once I get the hang of this story, I'm sure these will get more interesting.**

**Thanks for reading! I'll try to update again soon :)**


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

**A/N****:**

**Hey there everyone! Only a few days of writing and already so many followers! Thank you so much everyone for your support! It is for people like you that I write. If I could get to know each of you individually I would! Thanks again!**

**As usual, please Rate & Review and of course, enjoy! : D**

As Marius and Eponine walked into the dining hall, they were noticed first by none other than Grantaire.

"Wow. You both look like you were caught in a typhoon." He said with his mouth wide open.

"Don't you recognize this look, Grant?" Eponine teased. "We were trying to look like you."

"I resent that!" Grantaire said, pretending to be offended.

After they got some lunch, Eponine sat down at the table and Marius took the seat next to her. They sat and ate as the rest of the boys talked and laughed about different subjects.

"Blondie won a bet today." Courfeyrac said, elbowing Enjolras in the ribs. "He went a whole hour without talking about school or politics."

"I don't believe my ears," Eponine said, feigning shock. "I would have to see that to believe it."

"I was as shocked as you are." Grantaire said plopping down on her other side. Turning to Enjolras he said "Who are you, and what have you done with my best friend?"

"For the last time, Grantaire, we are not best friends." Enjolras said exasperatedly.

"Awwww, don't be so hard on poor Grant." Eponine said feigning pouting. "Everyone knows how close you are. No use hiding it."

Enjolras groaned and the table erupted in laughter as Grantaire plopped down next him unceremoniously and leaned with his elbow on his shoulder. One of Grantaire's closest friends, Jehan Prouvaire, walked into the room while all of this was going on. He walked over and tugged gently on Eponine's messy braid.

"Hey! Eponine, you and Marius look like you've been-"

"Through a typhoon." The whole table chorused.

Jehan chuckled "I was actually going to say 'been trying to look like Grantaire', but that works too."

"Hey!" Grantaire protested as the table burst into laughter again.

As the conversation at the table continued Eponine was wishing for dry clothing. Her soaked outfit was clinging to her in a very uncomfortable way and the cold water was making her shiver. She felt the goose bumps forming on her arms. Suddenly, a coat dropped onto her shoulders.

"Eponine, you must be freezing." Marius said rubbing his hands up and down on her arms.

She felt herself flush again. "Thank you, Marius."

"Of course." He said, smiling. "We can't have you dying of Pneumonia or anything now, can we?

Eponine blushed deeper as she pulled the coat tighter around her. It smelled like freshly cut grass and toothpaste. Marius' smell.

* * *

Later that day, as she walked out of class, she was pulled aside by the Director of Housing.

"Hello, Miss Thenardier. May I take a moment of your time?" The woman said.

"Hello Ma'am." She said, smiling. "Of course you can. Can I help you with something?"

"You can indeed. We have a new student who's joining late. She arrives tomorrow and we haven't been able to find a roommate for her until now. We found that you have a spare place in your dorm room and that you very closely match her wishes for a roommate. Would you be willing to receive her as your new roommate?"

Eponine blinked.

"A-a new roommate?"

"I apologize that it's so sudden, but we were confident that you could help her feel welcome."

It wasn't that Eponine didn't like sharing a room, but after her last roommate, she wasn't thinking optimistic thoughts. If this girl was anything like Carlotta had been, this was going to be a long year. But then again, it often did get lonely. She missed Azelma sometimes during the night. She finally nodded.

"That's no problem at all. Of course, I'd be glad to. When should I expect her?" She asked.

"That's fantastic. Thank you so much. You can expect her in the morning tomorrow, so if there's anything you want to hide, now would be the time." teased the woman.

"I will." Eponine said, laughing. "What's this girls name?"

"Oh, yes. I almost forgot. Her name is Cosette Fauchelevant." The woman answered. "Thank you again. But now, if you'll excuse me, I have matters to attend to. Have a good evening, Miss Thenardier."

And with that, she walked off.

Eponine stood still with her mouth open. She felt faint. _Cosette... It can't be..._ She walked to the side of the building and then leaned against the side. She remembered a small skinny child with hair cropped like a boy's. Cosette was a girl that had lived with Eponine's family for 5 years when they were both very young. Her mother, a single woman without a dollar to her name, had left the little girl with Eponine's parents hoping that they might care for her. They had taken her in, but instead of treating her well, they treated her as if they owned her. They worked her like a slave and gave her very little care.

This was when she had first learned of her parents' violence. They had beaten Cosette when she had failed to work hard enough. Cosette had stayed with them until she was 8 years old and an old man had come to collect her saying that her mother had passed away and that he was now her legal guardian. After paying her "expenses", a bill which Eponine's parents had made up to cheat the man, he took her away and they hadn't seen her since.

_If I remember you, then do you remember me? _Eponine thought uneasily.

* * *

Jehan struck the cue ball which shot forward, hitting the eight ball which, in answer, sank into the pocket.

"And... I win again." Grantaire said unenthusiastically. "Really J, do you even try to win?"

"Of course I do." Jehan answered, pulling his shaggy sandy brown hair back in a ponytail.

"It's kind of hard to believe that with how often you lose." Grantaire grumbled, sitting down. "Why do you even play if I always win?"

"Well, though I disagree with Henry Ford in many areas of opinion, I would agree with him in saying that 'Failure is simply the opportunity to begin again, this time more intelligently.'" Jehan quoted, shrugging his shoulders. "I'll keep playing pool with you as long as you ask. No one else will play with you, so I don't know why you complain when I put off my reading to play with you."

"Sorry, J. I do appreciate it, but sometimes I want a little competition." He said standing up and leaning his elbow against Jehan's shoulder. "Maybe the trick is to find a game that we're both actually decent at."

"You mean like-" Jehan started, looking hopeful.

"We are not playing poker again." Grantaire griped, folding his arms like a child who didn't get his way.

"I'm not giving you your San Francisco hoody back." Jehan declared stubbornly. "There's no use denying that I won fair and square."

"I didn't ask for it back, did I?" Grantaire asked glumly.

"No. But it was written all over your face." Jehan said, smiling at his friend. "If it makes you feel any better, though, I'll take you out for coffee. My treat."

Grantaire instantly perked up. "Really?"

"As long as you're willing to take my ride." Jehan said, pulling on his jacket.

Grantaire grimaced but then nodded. He hated riding with Jehan. It made him feel very unmanly. They headed out the door and were soon at the student parking lot. There sat Jehan's Moped, two helmets hanging from the handles.

"Why couldn't you have gotten a motorcycle like a regular guy?" Grantaire groaned, hopping onto the back.

"I don't know. Why don't you wear long pants in the cold like a regular guy?" Jehan countered, getting on.

"Touché." Grantaire mumbled looking down at his bare legs.

"Helmet?" Jehan said strapping on his own.

"Could you possibly be any lamer?" Grantaire said, trying really hard not to groan as he pulled the head gear on.

"Do you still want the coffee or would you rather just go back to the dorm?" Jehan sighed, turning the Moped on.

"Shutting up now." Grantaire assured him hastily.

As they pulled out on to the road, Grantaire looked around him into the almost completely dark night. The trees, mostly bare, would have looked ominous if the stars and moon had not shined through the branches. It was definitely drier than it had been earlier, but the cold had only worsened. Soon he would be forced to conform to society and wear warmer clothes.

When they finally pulled up into the café parking lot, they found that the place was almost empty and only two cars where in the lot. They were barely even stopped when Grantaire jumped off of the bike, leaving the helmet spinning on the asphalt for Jehan to pick up. Grantaire quickly entered the building, putting as much distance between him and the bright blue moped as possible. Jehan followed quickly and found Grantaire already at the counter. Their friend Joly's girlfriend, Musichette was working at the counter.

"Hey, Grant. Hey, J. Are you sure you want to be drinking coffee so late?" She asked, good naturedly.

"It's never too late for coffee." Grantaire answered, quickly trying to dismiss her doubts.

"Make mine decaf, please." Jehan added, taking his wallet out of his back pocket.

As Jehan paid, Grantaire looked at the crowd around the café. A couple of Literature Majors from Jehan's class where sitting in the middle of the room, deep in conversation, and two people, and old man and pretty girl about their age, sat at a window table. When he had collected both Jehan's and his own order, he walked over to the tables. Jehan was making a beeline for his classmates' table, but Grantaire grabbed him by the collar, steering him toward another table that was near to where the pretty girl and the old man where siting.

"Uhh... Grant, what are you doing?" Jehan questioned him, pulling on the other boys arm to release his collar.

"Getting a spot with a good view of the scenery." Grantaire said, nodding toward the girl.

"Oh..." Jehan answered, sitting down at the table. "I wonder who she is... The campus is pretty small, but I've never seen her before.

As in answer, the girl looked their direction and smiled.

"Hello." She said, looking at Grantaire. "You two wouldn't happen to be students at WEU would you?"

Grantaire sat silently, staring wide eyed. This girl both looked and sounded like an angel. After a moment of silence, Jehan quickly jumped in to answer the girl.

"Why, yes we are." He answered, smiling at her. "We were just saying that we haven't seen you around before. Are you?"

"I will be officially in about 12 hours." The girl answered, smiling back at him. "My name is Cosette Fauchelevant, and this is my father." The old man nodded at them.

"My name is Jehan Prouvaire, and the mime over there is Owen Grantaire." He said, gesturing in the gawking boy's direction.

"Hi." Grantaire said quickly, ears turning a bright red as he remembered his manners.

"Oh so you can talk!" Cosette teased, laughing. "It's a pleasure to meet you both."

"Likewise." Jehan answered. "What will you be majoring in? I'm a Literature Major and Grantaire is a Music Major."

"Oh, how interesting! I'm going to be studying Botanical Science." She answered.

They spent the next hour like this, laughing and talking. Mr. Fauchelevant and Jehan occasionally commented, but Cosette and Grantaire dominated most of the conversation. Eventually, Cosette's father announced that it was getting late and with final farewells, they headed their separate ways.

As the boys hopped on the moped, Jehan let out a chuckle

"What?" Grantaire said while looking at him with an eyebrow cocked.

"When you get started, you can't be stopped, can you? Though I must say, at first, I thought she had shocked you mute." Jehan said, wiggling his eyebrows in a hilarious manner.

"Of course not. She just surprised me. That's all." Grantaire huffed.

"I know what you mean." Jehan said, nodding enthusiastically. "I mean, how perfect can you be?"

"No kidding. I wonder where she got those looks. She doesn't take after her dad at all."

Her mom must have been gorgeous. I could have sworn that I was in heaven for a minute, talking to an angel… But then I saw you."

Grantaire answered this fist to the top of Jehan's head.

**A/N:**

**END CHAPTER :D **

**Couldn't figure out where to stop, and thought that was as good a time as any. **

**Updating soon**.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

**A/N:**

**Hey, you guys! :D I haven't updated for a bit. I've been super busy, but I'm finally done with my school year! WOOHOO! I have a bunch more free time now, and I'm going to make it one of my top priorities to finish editing chapters, then to WRITE MORE! That's right, Lovely people. I am going to actually introduce something new instead of just give you stuff you've already read. ;)**

**Right. So. Chapter 4 REVISED.**

The rafters where in flames. There was smoke everywhere. Eponine could barely breathe as she crawled along the floor, trying to find a way out of the burning building. The ceiling threatened to give way. _This must be what Hell is like,_ she thought as she inched her way toward the door she had spotted. She was almost there when the ceiling finally broke and a piece of it fell on her, and though it was small, it burned the flesh on her back. She cried out in agony. Eponine sat up, screaming in terror. She clawed at the darkness that seemed to swallow her and suffocate her. As she sweated and panted, she quickly realized she was in her own bed, no fire, no smoke, and no burns. But this wasn't just a nightmare, it was a memory.

The fire in the dream was the same one that had burned down the Eponine's family's inn. The fire had occurred at night, so when the family was forced from their beds, the rude awakening seemed like the end of the world. The rest of her family had managed to escape, but Eponine had been trapped inside of her room, flames blocking her way to any way of escape. When the board had fallen on her back, she had lost consciousness from the pain. She would have died that night if one of the firemen, a man named Theodule, hadn't heard her cry out. Nothing remained after that fire except for memories and a jagged scar that marred the pale skin on her back alongside many others. Ever since that night, Eponine had fear of fire.

This wasn't the first time that Eponine had this dream. Every time that she was really anxious about something, this nightmare would rear its ugly head. Tonight's anxiety was the result of the fact that she would be reconnected with someone she hadn't seen in years the next morning.

"Oh Cosette..." She whispered. "Please don't hate me..."

She turned to look at the clock.

_3:12 a.m. _

She groaned. She still had 3 hours before she had to get up, but she could never sleep after she had that dream. Instead, she got up, pulled on a sweatshirt over her tank top, kicked on her boots, and headed outside. The wind pulled at her hair, tangling it as she made her way to the common area between the freshmen dorms. She noticed that someone else was sitting on her usual bench. As she neared, she heard a familiar voice call out to her.

"A mysterious, beautiful woman approaches me in the night? I thought this kind of stuff only happened in movies."

It was Grantaire.

"Top of the evening to you, 'Ponine." He said, with his usual boyish smile.

"Hey Grant." She greeted him, plopping down next to him on the bench. "What are you doing out here so late?"

"I could ask you the same thing," He laughed. Rubbing his jaw, he added. "I had a dream that my old man returned from the dead to tell me how disappointed he was with my life choices. That's enough to make a grown man pee the bed."

Eponine laughed, glad for a distraction from her worries.

"What is it about your choices that he wouldn't like?" She asked, pulling her legs up and hugging them against her chest.

"Nothing I did could ever make that old lout happy," he said, smiling, though she could see the sadness behind his eyes. "If I didn't know better, I would say that he was glad to die so that he wouldn't have to deal with his failure of a son anymore."

"I'm sure that's not true." She said, looking at him as he gazed up at the stars. "I bet that somewhere deep inside he really loved you, R."

"Maybe so," He sighed, stretching his arms out on the back of the bench and gripping both sides. "But he definitely had an odd way of showing it."

Eponine nodded, leaning back and looking up at the stars herself. She noticed Orion and his glowing belt above them. She wondered what it would be like to be a star, your brilliant light shining down on the earth at night.

"So you never did say why you're out here." He mentioned. She could feel him looking at her.

"I couldn't sleep." She answered simply, refusing to meet his gaze.

"And?"

"And nothing. There's nothing more to tell."

"Come on. You don't expect me to believe that, do you?"

"What do you mean?" She said, finally looking at him, just to find him grinning again.

"You know what I mean." He chuckled. "Not even the night would dare interrupt the sleep of the great Eponine. There's got to be a reason."

She tried to keep a straight face, but still let out a little grin.

"A childhood nightmare." She commented, putting her chin on her knees. "It has a habit of showing up when I'm anxious." She surprised herself when she said this. Generally, she wouldn't be so open with someone, but Grantaire was so easy to talk to, not judging or degrading, face as open as sky.

"You? Anxious? Never!" he said, pretending to look horrified. "I don't believe it."

She rolled her eyes. "Let's see you stay calm when you're new roommate is showing up in only a few hours, and you realize that, it's a girl you knew in your childhood."

"What's so bad about that?" He asked. "I'd be glad to see someone I know from my childhood."

"Well... When I saw her last... Let's just say we weren't on the best terms." She said, frowning.

"What's that supposed to mean?" He mentioned, furrowing his brow.

"She lived with my family. We didn't exactly treat her like a loving daughter or sister." She said sighing.

"Ohhh... So it's that kind of... I understand..." He said, leaning over to place his elbows on his knees.

"Yeah..." She mumbled.

They sat in silence for a minute, staring straight ahead as they thought. Eventually, Grantaire stood up and stretched.

"Well, I'm not an expert in this area, but even I know you're not going to function all that well if you don't get a bit of sleep." He said, yawning. "Plus, I wouldn't mind getting a few winks in before morning myself."

He held out his hand and she took it, pulling herself to her feet.

"I guess I'll see you at breakfast then?" She said, as she turned to go.

"Coffee and donuts, yum yum." He said happily.

She rolled her eyes. "Goodnight, R."

"Night, 'Ponine."

When Eponine returned to her dorm room, she flopped down on her bed. Smiling, she pulled the warm covers up to her nose. She was glad she had talked to Grantaire. She felt much more relaxed than she did before. He had that effect on people.

For some reason, even after her late night talk, she still couldn't sleep. She lay still, eyes closed, for around fifteen minutes until she finally gave up and picked up the book that was sitting on the ground next to her bed. She had been reading the same paperback for almost two months now and was only now half way through. She had never been much of a reader, but that didn't stop her from trying. Reading worked like a charm. Not three minutes later, she was fast asleep with the book dangling from her hand.

* * *

_Beedeedeedee Beedeedeedee Beedeedee-__** BAM! **_

Eponine dragged herself out of bed as she slammed the top of the alarm. The alarm broke under her hand as it went right through the top. She swore under her breath as she wrapped her bleeding hand in a blanket on her bed. This wasn't exactly how she had wanted to start her morning. When she had finally fallen asleep, she began what would be one of the longest three hour periods of her life. She had spent those hours in a place between being awake and asleep, like when you're so feverish that you're delirious. To say the least, she was not it a particularly positive mood.

She sleepwalked to the bathroom and would have stayed in the shower for a long time, but the hot water had already run out. After a quick and very cold shower she returned to her room. She tried to put on her favorite T-shirt only to have one of the sleeves rip clean off. Once she was properly dressed, she walked down the hall only to have door open and slam right into her face.

"I am so-so-so-so sorry!"

The brunette girl responsible, a music major named Christine, knelt next to her trying to help her. Eponine waved away the girl's attempts to help and stood hand to her aching head.

"Don't worry about it. I'll be fine." She mumbled, hurrying away.

She walked out into the cold air, face stinging from the blow, and hopped down the stairs to the side walk. On her way to meet up with the boys in the parking lot, she came across two boys carrying a long wooden board, probably for the set of the musical going on soon. She tried to go around them, but they suddenly swung around, nailing her right on the shoulder and causing her to fall backwards into a tree. It's hard bark scraped her neck.

"Sorry!" One of the boys yelled, but they quickly hurried on their way without stopping.

So many unfortunate things happened to Eponine in the next five minutes that it would be impossible to write them all down without running out of paper. By the time that the parking lot was in view, she was more shuffling then walking, holding her side, injured from walking into a railing, and cut and bleeding, from falling into a rose bush. She was just stepping on to the pavement when she found a slick place where black ice had formed after the dew had frozen that morning.

Eponine fell, and being unable to break her fall, landed right on her hip. Tired and fed up, this time she didn't get up. She stayed there, and despite all of her better judgment, she started bawling. All of the stress from that morning, and the anxiety from the night before spilled out for a good minute until she realized she was not alone. She looked at the ground to her left only to find a pair of black boots next to her.

"You poor dear!" The boots said. "Here, let me help you!"

Eponine wiped her nose on her hoodie sleeve as she tried to figure out why a pair of boots where talking to her.

"No, no... It's ok. I'll be fine." she sniffled. "It's just been a really bad morning."

The owner of the boots knelt down and took her hand. She turned to look into a pair of worried blue eyes on a lovely face.

"I insist. You're poor face is so bruised. How did that happ-" The person stopped mid-sentence.

After a moment more, Eponine recognized the face. It belonged to none other than the one who had caused her so much anxiety in the past 12 hours.

"Wait a second…"

And that same person recognized her.

"Eponine?!" Cosette exclaimed.

* * *

Marius tapped his foot on the pavement as he leaned against Enjolras' car.

He, Enjolras, Grantaire, and Jehan were all hanging out in the parking lot waiting for Eponine. Joly was having breakfast with Musichetta so Jehan tagged along with them instead of taking his Moped. He really didn't have a choice but to ride with them, because had found a mysterious hole in the wheel, which Grantaire had sworn he knew nothing about, though he couldn't hold back a small grin. Eponine had said she would meet them to go out for breakfast, but she was already five minutes late. Another minute passed before he finally straightened up and turned to Enjolras.

"I think we should go look for her. It's not like her to be this late." He said folding his arms.

"I agree." Enjolras said. He turned to the other two, who were playing with a hackie-sack. "Wait here. We're going to look for Eponine."

Instead of obeying this order, Jehan and Grantaire quickly dropped what they were doing and followed anyway. They walked down the sidewalk leading back into the main campus when they came across two girls.

A tall, pretty girl with golden brown hair was standing next to their dark haired friend who was sitting on the ground and looked like she had seen better days.

"Eponine?!" The tall girl, Marius and Enjolras all said in union.

"Cosette?!" Came an answer from Eponine, Jehan and Grantaire, also simultaneously.

**A/N:**

**Cliff hanger! :D **

**See you guys in the next update! :)**


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

**A/N:**

**Hello, old chaps. It's 8:40 am (And now that I write this part in the parenthesis, it's 9:48 pm) and I am BORED. The cat was meowing at a fat bird outside a few minutes ago (more than twelve hours ago, now). I took a video of it and now it's the wall paper on my cell phone (and I still laugh every time I watch it). So yeah, that's how my day started (AND NOW IT'S ENDING). How about you? So, here's chapter… 5… though now I see it says CHAPTER 6 at the top of this page… changing that now. *Seconds Later* (Now hours) There we go, all done. (Heh… took you a while, Annette.)**

**SO ANYWAYS: READ, ENJOY, and don't forget to R & R (Please do.)**

The whole group stood in silence, looking from one girl to another. Cosette and Eponine watched each other, sharing looks of shock and astonishment. The boys looked at each other, each expecting someone else to speak up first. Eponine was the first one to speak.

"It seems that you've already met some of my friends then, Cosette?" She asked, barely hiding the tremble in her voice.

"Jehan and I met her and her dad last-" Grantaire spoke up quickly but was silenced by a jab to the ribs from Jehan.

"It would seem so. Eponine, what on earth are you doing here?" Cosette answered, not even trying to hide how her voice shook.

"I go to school here." Eponine answered. "It would appear that you do too. First day."

"How did you...?" Cosette started.

"Meet your new roommate." Eponine finished.

They stood in silence for a minute more. Then Cosette spoke up again.

"It's been..." She began.

"A long time." Eponine finished.

"Breakfast?" Cosette asked.

"IHOP?" Eponine said right back.

"I'll drive." Cosette finished, and after pulling the other girl to her feet, they both walked off in the direction of the parking lot.

The boys all stood in silence for a few more minutes before Enjolras spoke up.

"What the...?" He started.

"Don't ask." Grantaire interrupted.

"Well, I guess that Eponine won't be joining us for breakfast." Jehan chuckled.

"I should think not." Grantaire said, leaning his elbow on Jehan's shoulder.

"Breakfast?" Enjolras asked.

"Café?" Jehan suggested.

"I'll drive?" Grantaire said, looking hopeful.

"In your dreams." Enjolras said, leading the way to the car.

* * *

When the girls arrived at Cosette's car, a used 2001 Toyota Camry, Cosette opened the trunk and pulled out a first aid kit. She led Eponine to the front of the car and had her sit on the hood while she bandaged the many scratches and cuts from that morning.

"There. Good as new." Cosette said, sticking on the last Band-Aid.

"Thank you." Eponine said quietly as Cosette put the first aid kit back and they climbed into the car.

The girls didn't speak a word the whole car ride to IHOP. The just stared straight ahead, both lost in thought. When they were finally seated in a booth, they continued to sit silently. Cosette arranged her silverware over and over again. Eponine folded her napkin into different shapes. Eventually, Eponine spoke.

"So what are you going to study?" She asked slowly.

"What? Oh… Botanical Science." Cosette answered, jumping at the sudden question.

"That's plants, right? Why did you pick that?" Eponine answered, leaning on her elbows on the table.

"I have a garden at home. My dad and I tended it from when it was just a tangled mess. It's beautiful now, but it took a lot of hard work and I loved it." Cosette said, and Eponine could see it was true by the way that she grew starry eyed when she spoke about it.

"But what about you, Eponine?" Cosette asked gently. "What are you studying?"

"Oh! Me? Criminology." Eponine answered quickly.

"Oh. So you want to become a police officer, then?" Cosette asked, though it was obvious on her face that she found that idea odd.

"A private investigator actually." Eponine answered quietly. "You see after you... you know... left, things weren't exactly hunky-dory. The inn burned down... My parents... they became even more immoral. They turned to crime. They stole, and they got involved in street gangs. They tried to drag me and my siblings into it too. I want to become a private investigator so that I can help catch people like my parents before their kids end up... Like me..." She trailed off into silence.

"Wow… I didn't realize… I'm sorry." Cosette said, eyes wide.

"Don't be. It's not your fault." Eponine said, looking away quickly.

They sat like that for a minute more. The waitress came and gave them their drinks and took their orders. The silence continued. Finally, Eponine spoke again, this time her voice so low and rough that Cosette could barely hear her.

"I... I'm so, so sorry." She said, voice now audibly shaking.

"What? Sorry for what?" Cosette asked gently.

"For the 5 years that you live with me and my family." Eponine finally looked at her, tears in her eyes. "I cannot describe the guilt I've felt all these years. Ever since things went downhill for my family, I've understood how much grief we put you through. You should be glad that you made it out while you could."

Eponine lowered her head again, and slumped over the table. Cosette sat there, unsure of what to do. Finally, she put her hand on top of Eponine's. They sat like that for many minutes until Cosette finally spoke up calmly.

"I forgave all of you a long time ago." She said urging Eponine with her eyes to look at her. "I was angry for a long time, but I'm not anymore. Everyone does things they regret. The important thing is that you didn't grow up to be..."

"Like them." Eponine finished finally looking up into her eyes. The remains of her tears where still on her face, but the storm had cleared.

"Now then, no more tears or worries!" Cosette said, gripping Eponine's hands across the table. "You've certainly had an emotional day, haven't you? And it's not even 10 a.m.! Now you have to tell me, what on earth happened to your poor face?"

They spent the next hour by swapping stories and sharing the past years that they had missed in each other's lives. Eponine oohed and awed at the ridiculous adventure that Cosette and her father had been through when they visited Yosemite 3 summers ago, about how they had been eating breakfast when a herd of elk had come through the camp. Cosette laughed as Eponine told the story of how she had fallen through the roof of her house while trying to decorate for Christmas one year.

When they finally left the restaurant, Eponine was smiling so much that she felt as if her face would fall off. She wondered now why she had been so stressed about seeing Cosette again. This day was actually turning out to be a good one.

* * *

Grantaire put his cards face up on the table. "Gin!"

Jehan stared at him blankly for a few seconds before sighing and placing his own cards on the table.

"R, you realize we're playing hearts, right?" He said, leaning his head into his open palm.

"When did we switch games?" Grantaire said, startled.

"That's what we've been playing for the last hour, Grant." Jehan groaned. "No wonder I was winning. Where is your brain, man?"

"Sorry, J." Grantaire said, sighing. "I haven't been able to stop thinking about earlier this morning."

"That was pretty wild, wasn't it?" Jehan asked, leaning his elbows on the table. "I wonder what all of that was about."

Grantaire shrugged as if he was wondering the same thing. He was sure Eponine would not appreciate him sharing her story with everyone.

"It could be something dramatic!" Jehan exclaimed, leaning back in his chair. "They could be long lost sisters- no, fraternal twins! Who have been separated since they were young due to a terrible divorce. When they went off to breakfast, they had a tearful reunion where Eponine and Cosette shared stories of how difficult childhood had been without the other!"

It was Grantaire's turn to stare blankly at his friend.

"Are you crazy? Things like that don't happen in real life. You know, I think you should write those crappy novels for girls and take your story telling skills where they might be appreciated."

"Well then what do you think happened, spoil sport?" Jehan huffed indignantly.

"They probably knew each other when they were kids and just haven't seen each other for a while." Grantaire said, shrugging as he stood up.

"Have you no imagination?" Jehan exclaimed.

"Yes. But my common sense rules over it most times." Grantaire said as he picked up the cards off of the table.

"I would pay to see that." Enjolras stated looked up from his book. He was sitting across the room trying to ignore his two friends and get a bit of studying done.

"Hey!" Grantaire protested before sitting down on the side of Enjolras' chair and messing up the boy's hair. "You wouldn't want me to change who I am would you?" He pretended to pout.

Enjolras shoved him off of the side of the chair and smoothed his hair back down. "I do have a few requests." He joked.

Marius sat across the room staring out the window. He seemed as if he were searching the dark for something.

"Hey, Pontmercy!" Grantaire called from the ground. "Why so gloomy?"

"Who was that girl?" Marius asked, ignoring the question. "I don't think I've ever seen someone so angelic."

"Not even Enj?" Grantaire snorted, only to have a shoe thrown at him by his marble roommate.

"You know her, don't you, Grantaire?" Marius said, again ignoring the question.

"We both met her when we went out for coffee last night." Jehan said, joining Marius on the futon where he sat. "Why?"

"I have to see her again. Or at least talk to her." Marius sighed turning away from the window.

"Eponine is roommates with her. Maybe she can give her a note for you." Jehan suggested.

"That's a brilliant idea!" Marius exclaimed jumping up with so much force that he tipped the futon over backwards, which took Jehan along with it. "I'll go write something now!"

Without looking back at the boys, he ran out of the room, leaving Grantaire and Enjolras to pry the now broken futon open and pull a very distressed Jehan out of the mess.

* * *

On the other side of the common area, in the girls' dorm, Cosette and Eponine were unpacking the last of Cosette's things.

"Thank you so much, 'Ponine!" Cosette said, using the childhood nickname that had actually been her invention. "My dad would have stayed to help, but he had some very important business that needed his immediate attention back home in Plummet."

"It's no problem." Eponine said. "It's really the least I can do."

She was placing out some photographs. The one in her hand was of what looked like a theme park photo of Cosette and her father. They seemed to be riding a roller coaster. The look of shock on Mr. Fauchelevant and the way that all of Cosette's hair was flying up had made her laugh when she had first seen it.

"Oh you like that, do you?" Cosette said, sitting down on her newly made bed. "That was taken at Cedar Point the summer after junior year. I'm still shocked I was able to pull him onto that ride. He's terrified of them."

She pulled a couple more pictures out of the box and showed them to Cosette. The first was a picture of Cosette dressed in a pink dress with a puffy skirt. She was standing next to her father.

"Ooh, Prom picture. Let me guess." Eponine laughed. "You had a bad date, right?"

"Yeah. How'd you know?" Cosette said, placing the picture on her desk.

"You framed a picture with your dad instead of your date. It's easy to tell." Eponine said, shrugging. "Tell me he was at least good looking."

"That's an understatement. Tall, muscular, and blond" Cosette sighed.

"He Captain of the Football team, am I right?" Eponine guessed.

"Right you are. Josh Levee. Asked me to go to prom with him, and I said yes. That was a bad mistake." Cosette said, groaning. "He spent the whole night bragging about his achievements and leading me around on his arm like a trophy."

"Ahh, the worst kind of Jock." Eponine said, laughing.

"Hey! Don't laugh!" Cosette said, hitting the other girl with a pillow. "Don't tell me your date was any better."

"I went with a stoner. We all have our regrets." Eponine snorted. "Thankfully, my best friend rescued me halfway through the night."

"My dad did that job for me." Cosette said taking the last picture out of the box. "Of course, he is my best friend, so it's kind of the same."

"What about your mom? Where does she fit into the picture?" Eponine asked gently.

"I don't remember my mother. She died when I was really young." Cosette said, curling up on the bed after placing the final picture, one of a beautiful woman holding a baby in her arms, on the bedside table alongside of a picture of her father and her.

"That must have been tough." Eponine said, leaning against the wall next to Cosette.

"Not as much as you'd think." Cosette said, looking at the picture she had placed on the side table. "My dad cared for me just like a mom would have. He doesn't talk about her much, but I can tell that he loved her a lot. That picture is all I have of her. It was taken shortly after I was born."

"She was beautiful." Eponine said, tracing the outline of the woman's face. "You look like her, you know."

"You think so?" Cosette said, smiling.

"Yes." Eponine stated. "I guess that means that you have a little bit of her with you wherever you are."

Cosette smiled at that.

Eponine was glad that Cosette was her roommate. She felt silly for being so worried. It had been ridiculous to think that Cosette would still be angry after such a long time. But she still couldn't shake the feeling of guilt she had about everything. It was partly her family's fault that Cosette didn't remember her mother. She kept these feelings to herself though, knowing that Cosette would only deny it. Eponine was finally dragged out of her daydream when Cosette yawned.

"We both have class pretty early tomorrow." She said. "We should probably get to sleep so that we can actually function properly."

"Well said" Eponine said, rubbing her bruised face with her palm. "Today has been a really long day. I'm gonna sleep well tonight."

The two girls prepared for bed, said goodnight, and fell asleep comforted by the fact that they had someone just across the room who they could call a friend.

**A/N:**

**Lovely ladies (and lads too, if this is your taste, I guess) I hope you liked it. I'll post a new chapter shortly. :D**

**STAY AWESOME. **

**OR ELSE.**

**Weeeell**


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

**How do you do? My name's Annette. I'll fall asleep while writing, that's my bet. There's so many people I need to meet, but first I'll raid the fridge for something to eat.**

**Writing a song. You can probably tell where my mind is right now—CAT!**

**Oy vey… I'm so sleepy. Enjoy this or else.**

**Oh and R&R if you please ;)**

Courfeyrac woke up when a piece of paper hit him square in the jaw.

"Wa-h?"

He sat up and looked at the clock. He groaned to find that the hour was unmentionable and then looked to find the cause of his distress. Marius was sitting at his desk writing by lamplight. All around the room, crumpled pieces of paper where scattered on the floor.

"Marius, what on God's green earth are you doing? I was having a fantastic dream until you went and hit me in the face with this bloody piece of paper."

Marius didn't answer him. Instead, he continued to write, quietly mumbling to himself as he scribbled.

"Marius?" Courfeyrac questioned as he stood.

No answer.

"Marius?" He called one last time, but again, there was no answer.

Courfeyrac slowly approached the desk and put his hand lightly on Marius' shoulder. Marius instantly let out a very unmanly squeal and rolled his desk chair as far from his friend as possible.

"Oh. Courfeyrac, it's just you. Is a little warning next time too much to ask?" Marius grumbled, rolling his chair back to the desk.

Courfeyrac rolled his eyes, but said nothing to argue. "What are you still doing up? It's 3 freaking 40 in the morning!"

"Oh. I didn't realize it was so late." Marius answered absentmindedly "I just had something important to do and I couldn't quite get the wording right."

"No. Really?" Courfeyrac asked sarcastically, throwing a few of the crumpled pieces of paper into the waste basket by the door. "Let me see."

He took the piece of paper out from in front of Marius.

"Your eyes glow like the twin moons of Tatooine-" After reading this out loud, he burst into laughter "What is this?"

Marius blushed and ripped the paper out of Courfeyrac hands. "It's a work in progress." He grumbled, crumpling it up and tossing it into the waste basket.

"I should hope so." Courfeyrac said, snorting with laughter. "Your goofy Sci Fi knowledge isn't going to impress any ladies."

"What should I write then?" Marius exclaimed exasperatedly.

"Write from your heart, dude. Chicks love that!" Courfeyrac said, pushing Marius out of the chair and sat down in his place. "Here, let me try."

He started to write, and continued doing so for a few minutes in silence. Marius tried to interrupt him a few times with questions, but he was quickly silenced by a raised hand. Eventually Courfeyrac leaned back admiring his work.

"Try this one on for size." He said, grinning impishly.

Marius read the note several times through and sighed. The words of the note were beautiful. Such words would have a girl swooning in seconds.

"I wish you could just write this love note for me." He groaned, collapsing onto his bed. "You're so much better at this than I am."

"Nah, it just takes a bit of work. I can't do it for you because it has to come from you. Only you can write the perfect words for your lady friend." Courfeyrac grinned as he went to lie back down on his bed. "Now if you'll please excuse me, I'd really like some sleep. Good luck, Bro."

And with that, Courfeyrac was snoring again. Marius sat at the desk for the following 2 hours and eventually fell asleep, when he completed the note. He wasn't sure he was completely happy with it, but he was too exhausted to write it again.

* * *

The next day, Eponine had finished her classes. It was only around lunch, and it was her usual custom on Thursdays to spend the rest of her afternoon with Marius, who was off for the afternoon. She was sitting in the common ground when she heard him running up.

"Hi, 'Ponine! Sorry I'm late. Class ran long." He said, panting as he ran up, obviously out of breath.

"No problem. I just got here anyhow." She said standing. "Where do you want to go for lunch?"

"I'm feeling Mexican... How about that new place? Matt's, right?" He asked.

"Moe's..." She corrected smiling. "Sounds good."

Neither of them had a car, so they usually borrowed a vehicle from one of their friends. Jehan was in class during Thursday afternoon, so he usually let them take his Moped. Jehan had just had the tire replaced after the mysterious hole, so they were in luck. Marius didn't have the right kind of license to drive the bright blue Bike, so Eponine, whose father had owned a Motorcycle which had served as her mode of transportation for quite a while, usually drove.

She put the helmet on and waited for Marius to do the same. As she started the bike, Marius put his arms around her to hold himself on. His hands felt hot on her skin and she had to look straight ahead to hide her blush. As she drove, she started to think about the times when she learned to drive. She had learned how to drive along side of Marius, knowing that her own parents wouldn't care enough to teach her. She had always lied to Marius and his parents, telling them that her parents just traveled a lot because of their jobs, so when she went to the DMV to get her permit, Marius mother had pretended to be the parent of both of them. Marius' family was as close to her that she felt that they were her family as well.

When they arrived at the Mexican restaurant, they ordered and sat down at one of the window booths.

"So 'Ponine, What are your plans for Thanksgiving? It's only a week away." Marius said, stealing one of her chips.

"What, already? I didn't realize it was so close. I haven't made any plans." She said, smacking his hand to keep it away from her lunch.

"Well, that's good. My mom has been begging me to bring you with me so that you can celebrate with us." He said, smiling at her. "She wants me to bring some of the guys with us, but I'm sure they have better things to do with their time."

"So my plans have already been made for me?" She asked, smirking.

"Yeah, pretty much." Marius laughed.

They talked for a while, laughing and joking like usual, but Eponine could tell by the way Marius was looking at her that there was something that he wasn't telling her.

"Mar, what's up?" She asked, raising an eyebrow. "Is something bugging you?"

Marius grinned and sighed. "I can't hide anything from you, can I?" He asked, rolling his eyes.

"Not a chance." She said, leaning back in the booth. "So what's going down?"

"We've known each other for almost 8 years, 'Ponine. There's no one in this world that I trust more then you." He started, taking her hands in his own.

"R-really?" She said, feeling her face turn red.

"Of course, Eponine." He said, smiling at her. "And I wanted to share something with you. There's this girl. Ever since I first saw her, she's been the only thing I can think about. You know her pretty well, I think."

No way. She thought. He isn't... No freaking way...

"Go on..." She said, trying to keep her voice steady.

"I have a very important item in my pocket. I've thought about it hard, and I know that you're the right person to hand it over to." He said, reaching into his pocket.

"Is this really the right place to do this?" She asked, her heart beating faster than normal.

"I don't see why not." He said, pausing to look at her. He smiled. "I couldn't wait any longer. Eponine..."

"Marius?"

"Will you please give this note to your friend for me?"

"Wait... What?" She said, feeling her heart stop.

"You know, Eponine, your new roommate? Her name is Cosette, right? When I saw her yesterday I couldn't rip my eyes away." He said, handing her the neatly folded note. "It would mean the world to me if you would deliver this note to her for me."

She felt her face burning. She felt like crying, groaning, and screaming all at once, but she held herself back. "Can't you do it yourself? She only lives across the commons from you. It'd take you like 5 minutes." She said.

"I can't. I've tried several times but I can't build enough courage to do it." He said, leaning back, eyes glowing.

"What'll you give me if I do this for you?" She teased, trying to sound lighthearted.

"Anything, I swear!" He said, leaning forward excitedly.

"Hmm anything..." She said, trying to smile.

He reached into his pocket. "Is 20 bucks enough?" He asked, pulling out his wallet.

"What?" She cried.

"Not enough?" He asked, looking at her pleadingly.

"I don't want your money, Marius." She said, folding her arms and leaning back again.

"Alright... But you'll give it to her, right?"

She sighed. "You see? You can never hide anything from me." She chuckled sadly. "Ok. I'll do it. But you owe me one."

"Oh thank you! Thank you, 'Ponine!" He cried, nearly knocking over the table as he jumped up.

"Of course, I'd do anything for you, Marius." She said half-heartedly.

_Little you know that everything you say kills me a little more._ She thought darkly.

* * *

Grantaire sat outside on his usual late night bench. He had an espresso around 9 o' clock that evening, and had almost completely given up on sleep. He was lost in thought when a snapping twig pulled him back to reality.

"Agh!" He cried, standing and turning around quickly.

There stood Eponine, wearing an oversized sweatshirt along with a pair of pajama pants.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to scare you." She said, sitting down on the bench. "I couldn't sleep, so I decided to come and sit out here."

"You didn't scare me, just... startled." He replied defensively.

"Of course, Why would I think any different?." She said dryly. She rolled her eyes as he sat down beside her.

"What's the problem, Love?" Grantaire asked throwing his arm around her shoulder. "Bad night again."

Eponine groaned and put her head in her hands. "Don't get me started." She mumbled. "Marius and I went out for lunch, and I was extreme-friendzoned. He asked me to give a love letter to Cosette for him."

"Ohhhhh..." Grantaire groaned grabbing at his chest, as if he had been shot. "I hear you. Sorry to hear that 'Ponine. Sometimes I wonder if that boy has a brain in his head. Did you give her the note?"

"No." She sighed, handing Grantaire the neatly folded letter. "I thought about giving it to her several times tonight, but I just couldn't bring myself to do it."

Grantaire raised one eyebrow inquisitively. "Are you going to give it to her?" He asked her carefully.

"Oh, I don't know. If she likes him, it almost completely destroys any hope I might have of us getting together eventually." She said, sighing again.

"But," he warned her. "If he finds out that you didn't give it to her, that's an easy way to lose his trust."

"I know..." She said, trailing off into silence.

They sat in silence for a few minutes. Grantaire carefully unfolded the letter and read it through.

_Dearest Cosette,_

_My heart is so full that I fear it might burst. The moment I first saw you, I thought I had died and gone to heaven. That alone would explain the beautiful angel in front of me. Ever since I first set eyes on you, I haven't been able to think of anything or anyone else._

_Your roommate, Eponine, is my very best friend. With her around you have nothing to fear. She is the most trust worthy person I have ever met and she has brought many amazing blessings into my life. I pray you are one of them._

_Please respond, for a word from you is as sweet as a kiss. Eponine will give any answer to me._

_Yours Truly,_

_Marius Pontmercy_

Grantaire gave a low whistle.

"Wow, Ep... This is some serious stuff." He said, handing her back the letter.

"No kidding." She sighed. "I wish I knew what to do."

"If it's any help, if I were in your place, I would give her the note." He said, placing a hand on her shoulder. "It's about the only way that you could hold your friendship together."

After a minute, she sighed and nodded. "You're right. I'll give it to her tomorrow."

He smiled and clasped her shoulder encouragingly. "Everything will turn out right. No worries."

Eponine looked at him and chuckled.

"What?" He asked looking at her with a surprised grin on his face.

"It's nothing. I was just thinking." She said, leaning back on the bench. "If you were like this around the guys, they might actually take you seriously."

"And ruin my reputation? You must think me mad!" He laughed.

She punched him in the shoulder playfully before she got up. "Thanks, Grant. I might be able to sleep a bit more easily now." She said

"No problem. If you ever need me, you know where to find me." He said, winking.

* * *

Cosette let the hot water fall over her. It felt wonderful, but she knew that she couldn't stay in the shower much longer. She switched off the stream of water, the steam around her smelling if her rose shampoo. Her father had always given her roses on her birthday. Right before he left, after dropping her off at the college, he gave her the shampoo, knowing how much she loved roses. Cosette stepped out of the shower and suddenly, the room around her started to spin. She nearly fell, but thankfully, she caught a bar on the wall and kept herself standing. She breathed slowly and stood still until the world stopped spinning.

When the world had returned to normal, she looked in the mirror and examined herself. She had dark circles under her eyes from yet another sleepless night. She had barely slept for an hour in the last 3 days.

After dressing and doing her daily prep, carefully hiding the dark bruises under her eyes, she headed back to the doom room. Eponine was packing her bag for the day and she smiled when she saw Cosette.

"Good morning." She said. "Sleep well?"

"I had a rough night," Eponine answered, zipping the bag up and throwing on a brown hat. "Thankfully I got to sleep though. How about you?"

"I slept like a baby." Cosette lied. "Are you heading out to breakfast with your friends?"

"Yes indeed. I'm heading to the café with the guys. Want to come?" Eponine asked.

"Nah thanks. I have class in 20 minutes." Cosette said, making a face. "Have fun!"

"I'll try my best." Eponine said, heading to the door. She suddenly stopped and then turned around. "Oh yeah, before I forget," She said, fishing around in her pocket. "One of my friends asked me to give you this." She handed Cosette a nearly folded piece of paper with her name written on it.

"He really wanted me to give that to you." Eponine said, rolling her eyes. "Hopefully you don't disappoint him with your reaction."

Cosette laughed. Eponine waved a final goodbye and then walked out the door. She sat down on the bed and carefully unfolded the note. Her eyes widened as she read the neat handwriting and she lightly put her hand to her mouth.

_A love note?_ She thought. _But I've never even seen this boy. I wonder who he is. Marius Pontmercy..._

She read the note again, feeling her cheeks turn red. The words on the note were so sweet. She felt guilty for not even noticing the writer. She was trying to decide what to do next when there was a light rapping on the door. There stood a tall boy with wild black hair and green eyes with crinkled at the sides, an obvious sign of constant smiling. Cosette instantly joined him in grinning. She knew this face.

"Hi, Cosette." Grantaire said, grinning cheerfully.

"Hello, Owen!" She said, standing. "It's so nice to see a face that I recognize. Can I help you with something?"

"I was just wondering if you had seen 'Ponine. I had a question for her." He said, looking around the room as if willing Eponine to appear.

"You just missed her. She just left, not four minutes ago." She said, apologetically. "She said she was going to have breakfast with some of her friends at the café."

"Ahh, I should have guessed. Don't know why I didn't." He paused and then laughed. "Ok, that's a lie. I knew you would get that note today. I wanted to see your reaction." He gestured toward the note she had left lying on her bed.

"You know about this?" She asked, picking up the letter and folding it.

"Of course I do. Lover boy has been mooning over you since he first saw you..." He said, rolling his eyes. "Ep delivered the letter, I see."

"It would seem so." Cosette added, looking at the note again. "So who is this 'Marius'?" She asked making air quotes with her fingers.

"None other than our friendly neighborhood love addict. Marius Pontmercy. Careful around him, Love. He latches on pretty fast, and it's hard to get him to give up."

"Thanks for the advice." She said, playing with the paper in her hand. "I'll make sure I'm careful."

"Well, I won't keep you any longer." He said, looking at his phone for the time. "Botany majors have class, I know. The Botany major across the hall from me has an alarm that goes off an hour before every class."

"Good luck finding 'Ponine." She called as he walked down the hall.

"Thank you, Ma'am." He said, turning around and saluting. "I'm sure I'll find her.

"And thank you for the advice, Owen." She finished.

"Don't mention it!" He called, before the door closed behind him.

**A/N: **

**HA I DID IT! I posted 2 chapters in one day. I'm gonna go pass out now.**

**PEACE.**


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

**A/N: **

**Hello, my friends. :) So this is the first chapter that I've written from scratch for a long time, and to be honest, I have no idea where to go from here. So I'm just gonna wing it and see how it goes. After editing this, I'm hoping that it will meet the standards that I've already set. Hopefully, I'll have time to write it all, because I'm going on a hike/canoe trip with some friends this afternoon and probably won't have time to write after that.**

**Anyways, here's chapter 7 for your enjoyment. **

**Happy Saturday! :3 **

Grantaire ran the last couple of yards to the parking lot. He could see that everyone was already piling into Enjolras' car. He was determined to get a seat before they were all taken. There was no way he was riding on Jehan's Moped again. The guy was his best friend, but that didn't mean he was going to sacrifice his manhood. Eponine was starting to pull the door to the back closed when he quickly slid in and buckled his seat belt in one fluid movement.

"How nice of you to join us, Grantaire." Enjolras said, adjusting the rearview mirror.

"You know I wouldn't miss coffee for the whole world." Grantaire said, shrugging.

"I was starting to wonder." Eponine said, laughing.

"Have you no faith?!" Grantaire said, pretending to be horrified.

"I don't think any of us should answer that." Marius chuckled.

Before they could argue anymore, Enjolras turned on the radio and cranked the volume.

As they rolled out of the parking lot, the song on the radio changed songs. It was the Police. As usual, Grantaire started singing along.

"_One, two, three, four, five, six. Oh oh oh oh oh oh. Oh oh oh oh oh oh._" He sang.

"Not this again." Enjolras said, rolling his eyes.

Grantaire continued, "_I don't want to spend the rest of my life looking at the barrel of an Armalite. I don't want to spend the rest of my days keeping out of trouble like the soldiers say_."

"_I don't want to spend my time in hell looking at the walls of a prison cell_." Another voice joined in. It was Eponine.

"_I don't ever want to play the part of a statistic on a government chart_." They chorused.

"_There has to be an invisible sun_." He started.

"_It gives its heat to everyone._" She continued.

"_There has to be an invisible sun that gives us hope when the whole day's done._" They sang.

They continued to sing along to the radio until Enjolras got fed up with their antics. Eponine was doing an air guitar solo when suddenly _The Ride of the Valkyries_ started blaring through the car. Much to his chagrin, they started to make sounds to imitate the instruments. What shocked him the most was that Joly had started to sing along with them. It wasn't soon enough that they reached the Café.

When they were inside of the café, waiting for their orders, Marius walked up next to Eponine.

"So?" He asked, looking very excited.

"So? What do you mean?" Eponine answered, even though she already knew.

"Did you give Cosette the note?" He asked impatiently, as if he were annoyed.

Eponine jumped at the snap but quickly answered.

"Yes. Just before I met you all at the Parking lot."

"Oh thank you! Thank you! You're the best, 'Ponine!" He said spinning her around in circles.

She laughed as they spun and was so dizzy when they stopped that she had to lean against the wall for support.

"You had better remember that I'm the best if you want me to pull more stunts like that." She said, rolling her eyes.

"You know I will." He laughed. "But, did she say anything? Did she give you any response? A note?"

"Whoa. Down boy." She said, gesturing for him to calm down. "She didn't say anything yet, but I'm sure she will. Why don't you just go talk to her? I'm sure she would like to see you face to face now that she's read that note."

"No. No. No. Not yet. It's much too soon for that." He said, quickly backing away. "Just… please tell me if you get anything for me please.

He wandered off to sit by a window where he promptly began staring into the middle distance.

_Sure Marius. _Eponine thought as she watched him. _Anything for you._

She didn't even realize how long she had been watching him when Grantaire had her by the elbow with one hand, tray in the other, and was dragging her to a table to sit down. He pulled out a chair for her and she promptly plopped down in it, sighing. He sat down across from her

"Thanks, Grantaire." She said, leaning her chin on her hand as she leaned her elbow on the table.

"No problem." He said, smiling at her sympathetically. "The first step to get over heart break is to find something to keep your mind off of it."

"What would you suggest? She asked, taking a sip of her hot chocolate.

"I'm glad you asked." He said, grinning. "It just so happens that a weekend fall festival is going on in Lamarque Park. You know, Vendors bringing out their goods, pumpkin pie, hot drinks, maybe a carnival ride or five. Well, since tomorrow is Saturday, and homework is winding down a bit for thanksgiving break, I thought that maybe Jehan, you and I could go."

"You're brilliant! I love that idea! We should totally go." She said, a smile forming on her face. "They used to have one of those near where I lived. I used to take my younger siblings and we would have a ball!"

"I thought you would say something along those lines, so I already got the tickets." He said, laughing. "Courfeyrac said that we could use his car as transportation, so as long as you can meet us by the bench in the common area by 9:30, we're all set."

"Sounds like a plan." Eponine said, smiling at him.

At this, the others joined them at the table. They were all sitting and eating while going through their usually arguments. Today it was Ninjas vs. Pirates. Courfeyrac was making a very good point about the code of honor for ninjas when Marius interrupted.

"So, do any of you guys have plans for thanksgiving?" He asked, finishing off the last of his tea.

"I'm going home to visit my parents." Combeferre said, flicking a rubber band at Courfeyrac.

"I'm doing the same." Courfeyrac commented ducking under the flying object.

"My aunt invited me to stay at her house over break. She lives about an hour away." Jehan said, catching the rubber band and putting it around his wrist.

"Musichette and I are going to spend the break together at her parents' house." Joly added, smiling as he watched her working behind the counter. When she saw him looking at her, she waved at him and he blushed."

"Is anyone free?" Marius said, exasperated.

"I am." Enjolras said, putting down the book he had been reading. "My parents are both away on business trips this year."

"How convenient!" Grantaire exclaimed. "My mom is going on vacation in the Bahamas, and my sister hates my guts. Now I have someone to keep my company"

"How convenient…" Enjolras said sarcastically as he leaned his forehead on his palm.

"Well, if you guys are interested," Eponine said. "Marius and I are heading home to visit his family, and you're welcome to come."

"Does your mom make stuffing?" Grantaire asked.

"The best in the world." Marius laughed.

"I'm in!" Grantaire said, smiling.

"I may as well come too." Enjolras sighed. "I don't want to spend thanksgiving by myself."

"Great! Sounds like a plan. Are you willing to drive?" Marius asked Enjolras.

"I would," The blond boy answered. "But Joly and Musichetta are barrowing my car."

"Then I guess we'll just have to take the grey hound." Eponine, shrugging.

* * *

Cosette rounded the corner on her way back to the dorms when she heard a crash. She stopped and listened. There were voices coming from the other side of the building.

"Get away from me you creep." A terrified voice hissed. It sounded like a girl.

"Awwww… Come on, Sweetheart. Just a little kiss won't hurt, will it?" A deeper voice said.

"Stop or I'll scream." The first voice said.

When she heard this, Cosette hurried around the corner to where the voices where. A tall, gangly boy had a small petite girl pinned to the wall of the building. Cosette grabbed the boy by the arm, pulled him off of the girl and stood in front of her protectively.

"What do you think you're doing?" Cosette snapped at the boy.

"Why don't you back off? My girlfriend and I were just having a little… chat." He answered.

"Well, I think that your little "chat" has gone far enough. Why don't you make yourself scarce before I do it for you?" Cosette said, standing her ground.

"Why I oughta—" The boy started.

"Mr. Montparnasse, I would like a word with you, if you don't mind." A voice said.

They all turned and saw a middle aged man, a professor of literature, having just exited the building. He had a stern look on his face. The boy hesitated but the turned to go.

"This isn't over." He hissed at Cosette.

Once he was gone, Cosette turned to the girl.

"Are you alright? He didn't hurt you did he?" She asked, looking for any sign of ill treatment.

"No. No. I'm fine. Thanks to you I'm fine. Thank you so much." The other girl said.

"Of course, I'd hate to someone hurt or being taken advantage of." Cosette said.

"I can't thank you enough."

"No thanks necessary."

"At least let me buy you an ice cream or something."

"You don't have to do that."

"I know. But I want to. It's the least I can do."

"Alright then." Cosette said, smiling.

"I'm Meg, by the way." The girl said, holding her hand out.

"Cosette." The tall girl answered, shaking hands.

* * *

When Cosette and Meg arrived at the ice cream parlor, they ordered and then sat down.

"Forgive me for saying so, but it looks like you're in need of some couple counseling." Cosette said, licking the drips on her ice cream.

"Tell me about it." Meg answered.

"What was going on there?" Cosette asked.

"I was trying to tell Monty that I was done. I wanted to break up with him because I was tired of treatment like that." Meg said

"So that was a normal thing?"

"Yeah, and I'm sorry to say that, getting involved like you did, as admirable as it was, was really stupid."

Cosette laughed. "Why's that?"

"Oh… you're new. No wonder I haven't seen you around campus yet." Meg realized. "That, sweetheart, was Colin Montparnasse, grade school's bully, College style."

"Meaning?"

"You just made an enemy that you didn't want to have."

"Oh great," Cosette moaned. "Three days in College and I've already made an enemy. I'm starting to appreciate those martial arts classes that my dad had me take."

"Watch your back. He's got friends in the shadows. You've just become a pawn in a high risk game."

"Wow. That was a really corny line." Cosette chuckled.

"I know. I can't believe that came out of my mouth." Meg said, shocked.

"If you don't mind me asking, what were you doing dating the 'College bully'." Cosette said, making quote marks with her fingers.

"You'd be surprised how cute a guy with a dark side can be." Meg laughed. "I have to say, that was a bad idea on my part."

"I might have to be friends with you to keep you out of trouble, now that I know that." Cosette said, raising her eyebrows.

"I might have to take you up on that." Meg chuckled.

* * *

Eponine was sitting in her dorm room, folding up some blankets when the door opened. Cosette was standing in the doorway.

"Well, hello." Eponine said. "I was starting to wonder where you were."

"Hi, 'Ponine! I just met a girl named Meg. We went out for ice cream." Cosette said, smiling as she sat down and started to untie her shoes.

"Wow. That was fast. You've made a friend in College already? I know Meg. She lives just down the hall. She's a bit strange, but nice. How come I wasn't invited?" Eponine laughed.

"I may have made a friend, but I also made an enemy in the process. Colin Montparnasse?" Cosette said, shrugging.

"Oh Cosette, what am I gonna do with you?" Eponine sighed, sitting next to the other girl.

"Don't worry. We'll just lock the door really tight." Cosette said, poking Eponine in the side.

"And then build a barricade behind it." Eponine laughed, swatting Cosette's hand away.

They chatted a bit before Cosette decided to ask Eponine about earlier that day.

"So, that note you delivered to me." Cosette started. "Who's this Marius guy?"

Eponine sprawled out on the bed. "Only the best friend ever."

"Only?" Cosette said, suspiciously.

"Y-yeah. Just best friend." Eponine said, cursing herself for stuttering.

"No. Way. You like him, don't you!" Cosette cried.

"Is it really that obvious?" Eponine groaned.

"Well no. Not to him obviously." Cosette said, throwing the note to Eponine.

"I don't need to see it." Eponine said, blushing in shame. "I already read it. Grantaire did too."

"So I wasn't the only one to know?" Cosette laughed.

"No. Basically everyone knows." Eponine said, shrugging apologetically. "We just wanted you to read the note before we said anything."

"What's your opinion about all of this, 'Ponine?" Cosette frowned concernedly.

"Oh I don't know. I guess it's none of my business." Eponine said.

"It's totally your business. You've known him for, what, 6 years? It's more your business than anyone's." Cosette said, rolling her eyes.

"Alright, alright, I admit. I am disappointed. I hoped for the longest time that he might like me, but I guess Disney lies in a way. Dreams don't always come true."

"Awwww… Don't think that way! Your prince charming is out there, sweetie. In fact, you might have even already met him. There's nothing saying that it isn't this Marius fellow." Cosette assured her. "I haven't even said anything to him yet. Don't give up hope so soon."

"What are you going to say to him?" Eponine said, sitting up and looking at her.

"I haven't decided yet. I wanted to talk to you before I said anything. If you like him, I'm obviously not going to say yes. What if I just told him that I wasn't interested?"

"But, Cosette, I don't want you to break his heart either."

"Alright, then what do you suggest?"

"Um... What if you said something along the lines that you would like to get to know him, but only in a friendly way?"

"Sounds good. See how easy that was? Just a carefully worded note and all of our fears are gone." Cosette said, rubbing the other girls back comfortingly. "Don't give up hope. Your dreams will come true. Maybe just not in the way that you think.

Eponine had to admit that she felt a lot less stressed out now, but she still dreaded bringing Marius the note, just in case Marius didn't take thing the way that Cosette had meant them.


End file.
